Minnesota’s Eva Erickson finishes second on ‘Survivor’

Eva Erickson, who was born in St. Paul and grew up in Eagan, placed second in the 48th season of “Survivor,” the highest finish for a Minnesotan in the show’s long history.

Minneapolis’ Laurel Johnson from season 36 and St. Paul’s Carolyn Wiger from season 44 both came in third.

Kyle Fraser, a Brooklyn lawyer who didn’t appear to be an early threat, came on strong at the end on Wednesday’s episode to take the title and the million-dollar prize.

Erickson, currently a PhD candidate at Brown University, stood out by being the series’ first openly autistic contestant, which she shared in the fifth episode, a revelation that caused host Jeff Probst to cry. Her condition sometimes led to moments of overstimulation.

In the three-hour season finale, she sobbed uncontrollably while practicing for a fire-making challenge. Her closest ally, Joe Hunter, offered to take her place in the showdown that would determine who would end up in the final three.

Erickson turned him down.

“No way in hell am I going to let you build a fire instead of me,” she said as the California fire captain pleaded to save her.

The relationship between Erickson and Hunter, who finished third, was the most compelling storyline this season and will be remembered long after Fraser wraps up his tour of talk-show appearances.

Hunter played the role of encouraging father, putting his own success at risk to comfort and support Erickson when she was overwhelmed. Erickson showed the same loyalty while wearing her emotions on her sleeve. Backstabbing, usually a necessary evil to become a finalist, was not part of her strategy.

“You played a game in which you were true to yourself,” said contestant Mary Zheng, one of two jury members who voted for Erickson to win. “You played with your heart and you played in a way I’ve never seen anyone play it before.”

Even if Erickson, 24, didn’t take the title, she emerged as the season’s most prominent public figure.

Last month, she started posting videos on Instagram, criticizing Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s generalizations about people with autism.

Erickson, the first woman to play on the men’s ice hockey club at Georgia Tech, also started selling Fiji Hockey Club T-shirts, a nod to the shooting locale for “Survivor.” Part of the proceeds are going to Minnesota Special Hockey, which gives kids with autism and other special needs the chance to hit the ice in an environment built for them.

“I’m proud to show what autism is like for me,” she said during the final tribal council. “I think this will change the way people on the spectrum and parents of people on the spectrum think about autism.”

Erickson’s personality contributed mightily to what may have been the most heart-warming, non-combative season of “Survivor.” Even during the fire-making challenge, contestant Kamilla Karthigesu, the fourth-place finisher, took a break from her fruitless efforts to create a flame to encourage Erickson, who started to panic after the wind threatened to put out her fire.

Audiences responded to the vibe. Ratings climbed steadily in the second half of the season with more than 4.5 million viewers tuning in for recent episodes. That’s a slight increase from last year.

Still, it’s a big drop from when the show first premiered in 2000 and instantly became a part of the pop-culture zeitgeist. The finale for season one drew 52 million fans, the kind of number usually reserved for Super Bowls.